1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a female terminal.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 14 of this specification shows a known female terminal 1 with an embossed projection 3 provided on a spring portion 2 to clarify a contact position of a male terminal and the female terminal. As a male terminal 4 is inserted into the female terminal 1, the male terminal 4 butts against a skirt portion 5 of the projection 3 when starting to move onto the projection 3. Accordingly, a contact pressure is generated and a peak is reached while the male terminal is moving onto the projection 3. Specifically, this peak contact pressure is larger than a contact pressure at a top portion 6, which is a final contact position with the male terminal 4. Thus, if a point where the contact pressure peaks and the top portion 6 are arranged very close to each other, the top portion 6 is also subject to plating wear and contact resistance on the top portion 6 may increase. Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2009-21187 discloses a female terminal that is designed to reduce an insertion force.
However, even if the female terminal described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2009-21187 can reduce an insertion force, a projecting portion to be brought resiliently into contact with the male terminal is an embossed projection and it remains unchanged that a point where a contact pressure peaks and a top portion are arranged very close to each other. Thus, there is a possibility that plating wear occurs from the point where the contact pressure peaks to the top portion and contact resistance increases.